Carl Borromäus Andreas Ruthart, also known as Carl Ruther and Karl Ruthard; in Italian as Carlo Borromeo Rutardo (1630, Danzig - c. 1703,

L'Aquila L'Aquila ( , ) is a city and ''comune'' in central Italy. It is the capital city of both the Abruzzo region and of the Province of L'Aquila. , it has a population of 70,967 inhabitants. Laid out within medieval walls on a hill in the wide valle ...

) was a German painter who spent most of his career in Italy. During the last years of his life, he was referred to as Frà Andrea. He considered himself to be a follower of

Peter Paul Rubens Sir Peter Paul Rubens (; ; 28 June 1577 – 30 May 1640) was a Flemish artist and diplomat from the Duchy of Brabant in the Southern Netherlands (modern-day Belgium). He is considered the most influential artist of the Flemish Baroque traditio ...

Biography

Around 1650, he was an apprentice of

Daniel Schultz Jerzy (Georg) Daniel Schultz known also as Daniel Schultz the Younger (1615–1683) was a prominent painter of the Baroque era, born and active in the Polish–Lithuanian Commonwealth. He painted many Polish and Lithuanian nobles, members of ...

. From 1663 to 1664, he was a Guild Master in

Antwerp Antwerp (; nl, Antwerpen ; french: Anvers ; es, Amberes) is the largest city in Belgium by area at and the capital of Antwerp Province in the Flemish Region. With a population of 520,504,

. In the late 1660s, he passed through

Regensburg Regensburg or is a city in eastern Bavaria, at the confluence of the Danube, Naab and Regen rivers. It is capital of the Upper Palatinate subregion of the state in the south of Germany. With more than 150,000 inhabitants, Regensburg is the f ...

on his way to Vienna, where he stayed for two years. Initially, he was an

animal painter An animal painter is an artist who specialises in (or is known for their skill in) the portrayal of animals. The ''OED'' dates the first express use of the term "animal painter" to the mid-18th century: by English physician, naturalist and wri ...

and specialized in depicting predators; especially the large cats, with harsh background scenes. Such paintings were very popular in Germany at the time. He also collaborated with

Wilhelm Schubert van Ehrenberg Wilhelm Schubert van Ehrenberg or Willem Schubart van Ehrenberg (also: Wilhem Schubert von Ehrenberg or Wilhem Schubert van Ehrenberg (Antwerp, 1630 or 1637– Antwerp, c. 1676) was a Flemish painter mainly active in Antwerp who specialized in a ...

, adding animals to his landscapes.Biographical notes
@ the Getty Museum. After moving to Italy, around 1672, he turned to painting sacred subjects, beginning with decorations for the choir at the Church of Sant'Eusebio in Rome. He eventually settled in L'Aquila, impressed by the rite of the (Celestinian Forgiveness), which was instituted by Pope

Celestine V Celestine is a given name and a surname. People Given name * Pope Celestine I (died 432) * Pope Celestine II (died 1144) * Pope Celestine III (c. 1106–1198) * Pope Celestine IV (died 1241) * Pope Celestine V (1215–1296) * Antipope Cele ...

in the 13th century. So much so, that he became a Celestine monk and took the name Frà Andrea. He would spend the rest of his life in the convent at the Basilica of

Santa Maria di Collemaggio Santa Maria di Collemaggio is a large medieval church in L'Aquila, central Italy. It was the site of the original Papal Jubilee, a penitential observation devised by Pope Celestine V, who is buried there. The church, which therefore ranks as a ba ...

. While there, he painted four large canvases depicting the life of Pope Celestine, all of which, in keeping with his earlier specialty, included animals. This time however, they are shown being tamed. He did a similar series on Saint

Bernardino of Siena Bernardino of Siena, OFM (8 September 138020 May 1444), also known as Bernardine, was an Italian priest and Franciscan missionary preacher in Italy. He was a systematizer of Scholastic economics. His preaching, his book burnings, and his " bon ...

which is preserved at the

Museo Nazionale d'Abruzzo The Museo Nazionale d'Abruzzo is hosted in the Forte Spagnolo of L'Aquila. The Museum is on three floors: on the ground floor, there is the giant skeleton of an Archidiskon meridionalis (improperly called mammoth, a prehistoric "elephant") found ...

. he also did four portrait paintings for the Palazzo del Municipio in

Chieti Chieti (, ; , nap, label= Abruzzese, Chjïétë, ; gr, Θεάτη, Theátē; lat, Theate, ) is a city and ''comune'' (municipality) in Central Italy, east by northeast of Rome. It is the capital of the province of Chieti in the Abruzzo region. ...

depicting Pope Celestine,

Braccio da Montone {{Infobox noble, type , name = Braccio da Montone , title = Prince of Capua , image = Braccio da Montone.jpg , caption = , alt = , CoA = , more = no , succession = Prince of Capua , reign = {{nowrap, July 1421 – 5 June 1424 , predecessor = R ...

Saint Benedict Benedict of Nursia ( la, Benedictus Nursiae; it, Benedetto da Norcia; 2 March AD 480 – 21 March AD 548) was an Christianity in Italy, Italian Christian monk, writer, and theologian who is venerated in the Catholic Church, the Eastern Ortho ...

and

Charles of Anjou Charles I (early 1226/12277 January 1285), commonly called Charles of Anjou, was a member of the royal Capetian dynasty and the founder of the second House of Anjou. He was Count of Provence (1246–85) and Forcalquier (1246–48, 1256–85) i ...

. A painting by Ehrenburg, ''Ulysses in Circe's Palace'', which includes animals by Ruthart, is at the

Getty Center The Getty Center, in Los Angeles, California, is a campus of the Getty Museum and other programs of the Getty Trust. The $1.3 billion center opened to the public on December 16, 1997 and is well known for its architecture, gardens, and views over ...

in Los Angeles.

References

External links

More works by Ruthart
@ ArtNet {{DEFAULTSORT:Ruthart, Carl 1630 births 1700s deaths 17th-century German painters German emigrants to Italy Animal painters Artists from Gdańsk

Biography

References

Further reading

External links